Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1887-07-27
a MISSIONARY ABROAD.

Correspondence Press and Dakotaisn:
Howard, Dakota. July 25-Arriyed at
Villas at 1857 and was met at the depot
by Rev. Isaac G.. Gordon, the Congrega.
tional minister at Howard, who came TO
take the writer over to his town, three.
miles away on the Milwaukee road. Nh.
Gordon has occupied the Howard pulpit
but about eleven months but has been
in south Dakota about four years.
Prior to that he was stationed at
Sanlt st. Marie. Michigan.
A mile travelled brought us to the very
pleasant home of Mr.. Stuart P. Wake
field, late of Reading, Mass, where
the engagement had been made for us
to dine. Mr., Wakefield, like most OF
his brothers leaving the New England
states, did not reach his final destination
in . single journey, but pitched his tent
westward first in the then far off west,
in Jefferson county, Wisconsin, about
fifty miles west of Milwaukee where he
encountered a wilderness, the land
covered with heavy timber. He lived
sufficiently long there to see wheat fields
and corn and meadows where the forest
once was, to see the price of land go up
from two dollars to a hundred dollars
per acre, to see timber SO plenty, SO valu.
eIess at first, become q scarcity that
money could not buy. Three years ago,
with his grown up sons, he came to this
country-came too late to homestead,
SO he bought his Improvements. Each
OF his sons he has settled on q half Sec
tion which will soon be a paying invest
ment. Many pleasant scraps of history
were recalled in our brief stay with this
family from my native state, History
in ante bellum days, in anti.slavery
days men and means known to both him
and the writer. Here we were told of
an old friend from the region of Rock
ford, Ills, who had pitched his tent five
years ago in these parts. He lived at
the south aud east about two miles. We
were soon on the road, threading our
way among fields of corn, wild meadows
and stacks of the newly cut wheat, or
wheat fields where reapers were busy as
we passed. We had nearly reached the
home when we met the wife and mother
with her four little ones going to the
town, two miles away, to trade, the
means of transportation being a baby
carriage with accommo dation for
the two youngest while the other
two walked by the mothers side,
while the mother was the moving power
for the baby carriage. We took the two
pedestrians into our carriage, while we
directed our steps to the distant harvest
field were the father was cutting the
wheat. Two spans of horses pulled the
reaper. As the New England man said
when he first saw the the reaper doing
its railroad business in a wide field oil
ground west of the Mississippi, that it
WAS the first time in his life he realized
that he was 'sout DOORS" So we thought
of the singular appropriateness of the
words as We looked at the work of the
reapers in this and other fields in sight
We we're soon on our way to the town
In our ride we passed the grave yard TO,
this region, where we saw another grave
opening, a reminder that another house
was in mourning. Then We thought tina,
about this very hour our Yankton friends
were standing about the open grave o,
the dear little one from the home OF
Mayor Teller. If our sympathy stopped
at this newly opened grave it also was q
mourner with those who mourned in
| Ysnktcn.
The town was reached. Howard con-
tains q population of about 700, has fvs
churches, one roller mill with q capacity
of a hundred barrels of -four q day. One
neat graded school building with ampl,
grounds shut in by a neat fences iou'
hotels, two saloons and a court house. ]
heard good words of our Yankton Chiei
Justice Trip in Howard-that he wasno
accused of being unduly influenced b.
partisan feeling in selecting or retaining
his clerks of the courts.
Formed the acquaintance of Mr.. Geo
+. LinsIey, q graduate of Yale and nov
q member of the senior class in Birkle,
divinity school in Middleton, Vermont
MIR. Linsley came ont to labor during
bis vacation ct the instance of Bisho]
Hare. Rector Bohn will doubtless re
call him to mind, for he was present a
the Episcopal convention at Slou:
Falls. Another of the students is labor
ing at Fargo, MIR. Hunts member q
the middle class in the same school
Presented the claims Of Yankton oolleg,
in the Congregational church Sabbath
morning, took q small collection fer til
college, obtained some choice minerals
canvassed for more students, called npo
the editor at his sanotum of the Howar
Advance and solicited the paper for I'll
college reading room, assisted ct th
large funeral in The Congregations
church Sabbath afternoon, the burif
OF the one for whom the grave ws
!, opening the day before, q young man {
about twenty-five years, the son OF on
OF the first settlers in Miner count,
The name Of the deceased was NJ
Frank Hogan, who died of pulmona,
consumption. Went out In town on8tt
fourth of July and buried yesterday.
Took tea with another old friend, M
Theodore Rsdclif, late of Rockfor